Students in first grade will discover objects that sink or float through observation, classification, gathering data, and interpreting data.

Materials Needed:

A variety of different objects A variety of different types of ballsclay 5 large clear containers for wateraluminum towelspennies waterA variety of different fruit

Strategy:

Opening Activity:Place a variety of objects into a clear tank filled with water. Ask the children what they observe after each object is placed in the water. Discuss the words sink and float. Have each child take one object, predict if it will sink or float and place it into the water. Ask the children why did some of these objects sink and some float? After the discussion, the students will break up into five groups to explore the concept of sink or float at learning stations.

Stations:

1. Students will play the game "Sinker or Floater" to acquire a better sense of which materials sink or float. Each child takes a turn by reaching into a bag of objects and stating if that object will sink or float. Next, the student places the object in the water and if their prediction was correct they get a point. The students continue the game until all the objects have been selected.

2. Students will discover which fruits float by placing a variety of fruit into a deep container of water. Next, they will draw pictures, on a given piece of paper, illustrating their findings on which fruit floats or sinks.

3. Students will make a boat using clay. Next, they will predict, on a class graph, how many pennies their boat will hold without sinking. Third, they will put their boat in the water container and place pennies inside the boat. Fourth, they will put their actual number of pennies the boat held without sinking. Last, the students will put their name on their boat and place it aside for a group comparison.

4. Students will repeat the exact steps for station 3 using aluminum foil rather than clay.

5. Students will experiment with a variety of balls (golf ball, tennis ball, football, soccer ball, etc.) to see if they sink or float. First, they will predict by making a real graph, using the actual balls, showing which balls will sink and which will float. Second, they will test each ball in the water container. Last, they will make their own graph, using crayons and paper, to illustrate what they have discovered.

Performance Assessment:

After the students have completed all stations, discuss observations made at each. The students will be assessed on their participation in the group discussion and their work created at each learning station.